This Is Why I Travel

Traveling. Everyone wants to do it. Everyone wants to say they’ve been there or they’ve done that, and most importantly- picture or didn’t happen, am I right?

And look, I get it. Who would say no to a new adventure or not want to capture memories of a new experience?

I understand that everyone wants to travel but I don’t think everyone knows why they do it and not knowing why you do something is robbing yourself of a deeper experience.

I didn't fully know why I liked to travel until I spontaneously decided to join a group of friends who were traveling to Europe for Christmas. Nearly all the logistics were graciously handled by a few people, all I had to do was book my flight. Taking the backseat on planning details for a trip abroad was already a weight off my shoulders and I was feeling good.

And then... I arrived to Europe...

and with the group, we hit the ground running (sometimes, literally) to classical concerts, Christmas markets, cathedrals, museums, and more. We were visiting Prague, Vienna, and Budapest in a span of 7 days so yeah, there was a lot of ground to cover and the people did an excellent job of planning out (to the minute) our daily schedules.

They visited a lot of historical castles and dined at some unique restaurants. Now, notice the pronoun I’m using is they and not we because I decided to venture on my own after the first 2 days of feeling kind of edgy. Before you jump to conclusions- it’s not them, they’re great; it was just not the way I travel and I didn’t quite know this until I traveled in someone else’s style.

You see, when I venture somewhere new, I do a great job of leaving the Type-A-naturally-organizing-calendar-abiding-morning-hustle attitude all behind. Instead, I noticed that I bring a well-rested-open-heart-ready-to-be-restored approach.

I walk slower, talk slower, drink slower, and feel deeper. I make eye contact, smile more, and say hello first because all that is going through my mind is: "wow, I’ve never been here before. I am going to be a sponge right now, soak this all in, and engage with this new world around me."

Anyways, I journaled heavily on this while sipping Kaffee in Vienna and here’s what I want to share. 
This is my philosophy of travel:

I travel, in essence, to be childlike again.
I do my best to slow time down and get taken in by all that’s around me- like the architecture, language, coffee culture, and city lifestyle.
I enjoy scheduling a few things in, perhaps an arts performance or uncommon dining experience but I leave plenty of time to wander, explore, and most critically, meet new people.
To travel is to get lost in conversation with locals, to relate and to build friendships.

It’s easy to google search “Top Things To Do in Europe” and set a plan to see all those landmarks, take pictures of statues, and check those items off your list and many people find this fun, good for them.

But I truly believe that traveling is about finding things that you never even knew you were looking for. It should be measured in sunsets, moments of laughter, and enlightening conversations. My best memories from traveling live in my heart and not in my iCloud because I was so in the moment that I forgot to snap a picture. 

Well, that's me. What’s your ideal travel experience?